Third, the winners call themselves “heroes”: justified by the greatness of their civilization.

The Old Testament word for “city” (`ir) would have, to Israel’s ears, conjured up images of a fortified military garrison.

So when Israel “utterly destroys” a city like Jericho or Ai, we should picture a military fort being taken over—not a civilian massacre.

Rahab and her family are the only noncombatants specifically depicted as living in any of the cities destroyed in Joshua, and they are spared.

the Canaanites are “driven out,” not “killed off.” The phrase “drive out” is the primary language used for the Canaanites,

The story makes clear: these are military victories, not civilian massacres.

Ancient civilizations used the gods to justify their violence; we use our ideologies.

A city having no survivors is not a picture of a civilian massacre, but the taking over of a military stronghold. Civilians were not targeted; combatants were.

God was outrageously patient with